How To Destroy Your Credibility

When I get followers from Twitter, new friends from Facebook and connections from LinkedIn than sometimes there are profiles with no picture or with a stock photo from a model for example.

When I get this invitations and contacts I ask myself why these folks do not show their own picture.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean company logos. I only mean people who do not show their original photo.

I personally do not add requests without a photo or with an obviously faked photos.

I have one example: Before a couple of weeks I have commented on a discussion on LinkedIn where the person has offered financial services.

I think you agree with me that financial services are trust sensitive. The person had no photo with their profile. I have recommended to this person to add his photo.

The next day I got a message where he wrote to me that they will discuss internally to do this.

I was curious and went to the profile one day later to see if he has added a photo. And guess what, he didn’t.

I asked myself, what’s the reason to discuss to add a photo or not to a LinkedIn profile ? Further I asked myself how they want to build trust without to be authentic, means when they did not show who they are.

Would you do financial transaction with them?

I wouldn’t!

Social networking is also to build credibility and trust. And with faked or no personal photo the opposite of this can be achieved.

In these times where everybody has become visible online it is important to live your live every day online like your mother is watching, probably she is.

When engaging in social media there is a huge opportunity to get great connections but only if you are authentic, means show that you are yourself, and you will attract friends and connections which like you and the things  you are doing.

To predict to be something other will not help to achieve any social media goals! This only will destroy trust and credibility!

Let me know what you think and comment below. I’d love to hear from you.

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